8 teams battle for APC Unity football tournament in Abuja

No fewer than eight teams are currently participating in the ongoing weeklong maiden edition of the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Unity Cup Football Championship in Abuja.

Some of the teams from various states taking part in the competition targeted at hunting for talents to feed the various nationals teams include Jigawa, Taraba, Niger, Kogi, Benue, Nasarawa states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

In his remarks during the opening ceremony, which has in attendance the governor of Niger State, Alh Abubakar Sani Bello and almost all the members of the APC National Working Committee (NWC), the party’s National Youth Leader, Ibrahim Dasuki Jalo, hinged the decision to prosecute the tournament in Abuja due to logistics challenges.

“I welcome everybody to this historic event. It is the first competition of its kind to be organised by any political party. Our target in organising this tournament is to harvest targets in every part of the country for our various national trams.

“We hope talent will be discovered. We also know the importance of football as an instrument of unity and peace. We are also aware that football is now viable commercial game.

“We want to use this competition as an empowerment to the youths who will in turn contribute to the country’s GDP and equally an income generation to their families. We decided to bring the competition to Abuja because of certain logistics challenges. I thank everyone who made the competition a possibility, “ he said.

The National Chairman of the party, Chief John Odiegie Oyegun represented by the National Vice Chairman South, Dr Segun Oni, noted that the party has scored another first by organising the football competition, stressing that it is in line with the party’s commitment to change the narratives of the Nigerian youths.

“Let me start by congratulating our party for scoring another first with this National Unity Cup football championship. The party opted for football competition because of its importance in uniting this country.

There is no doubt that football has remained an instrument of peace and unity in this country. We have decided to tap on the potentialities of this game to empower Nigeria youths through a talent hunt competition like this,” he said.